The Canyons

i’m sure utah has some official state motto type thing and this may or may not actually be it. but when they want your tourism dollars you’ll often see it written thusly:

Utah: The Greatest Snow On Earth.

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unbeknownst to me (yet), there is only one resort here that my pass grants access to: the canyons, in park city, a 30 minute drive from my doorstep. this statement will make much more sense tomorrow, when the next morning’s confusion is revealed. but for now, just consider the mysterious statement as an excuse to tell you where the next few pictures (and the previous) were taken.

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the canyons resort is absolutely massive, almost large enough to rival the mothership itself, Vail. i started on the right (technically, skier’s left).

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everything here seems to be fair game for skiing; as long as you’re not deterred by all the doomandgloomsmanship on the sidecountry gates. the gist of it, for those of you who haven’t seen them: “if we have to come rescue you in there, you’re either dead or paying.”

I hoofed it to check the snow on top of Murdock Peak, and was inspired to take the pictures above.

one of my fellow hikers offered to take a picture of me on top; he took 3, bless his soul, and that’s the best one. i found a nice looking spot to drop in, and then did.

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i’ll say it again: Utah is magic. part of that magic is the snow. it’s so fluffy you can’t even make a snowball. when it’s not snowing, the air up here on the mountains glitters.

at this point in time, however, there is not as much snow up here as in Colorado when i left. this means running into the occasional hazard blocking the way down.

hazards are simply a factor in riding snow. they are a device, sent by the spirit of skiing, to teach us to overcome. it doesn’t matter how they are overcome, it’s always a learning experience.
i am here to learn.

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sometimes i stop in the woods and just sit for a while, listening to the silence. the trees know i’m here. the aspens* actually have eyes, and they watch me.

i watch back.

* ~ More accurately, Aspen – we have discovered that entire aspen forests in fact connect at their root, forming a single organism.

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Later in the day, i travel around to discover some massive steep bowls.